Ramsey Says Budget Cuts Will Not Stop U Of L's Progress

by Gabe Bullard on September 21, 2010

University of Louisville president James Ramsey says the school will not back down from its goals for the year 2020, despite financial challenges.

Thirteen years ago, the General Assembly mandated that U of L become a “preeminent metropolitan research university” by 2020. In his annual State of the University address Tuesday, Ramsey said those goals have been difficult to accomplish, since U of L has faced myriad challenges.

“…The flood; continued state budget cuts—budget cuts that are now the norm and not the exception; the press’s fixation on personalities and not the real work of the university.”

But despite those challenges, Ramsey said the school’s goals will be met

“Economic recovery will be slow. Resources from our primary funding agency—the Commonwealth of Kentucky—will be limited. So can we be optimistic as we look not only to the new academic year, but, more importantly, as we look toward 2020?”

Ramsey balanced the negative aspects of his speech by citing a litany of successes, including U of L’s Rhodes Scholar and academic proficiency among athletes.